FCPCS Members Testify Before Florida Senate Committee

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- As we reported two weeks ago, FCPCS representatives were invited to give testimony at a workshop on school choice conducted by the House PreK-12 Innovation Subcommittee.

This morning, three FCPCS members were present to speak at a workshop on Public Schools Fixed Capital Outlay conducted by the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on PreK-12 Education.

The three speakers were Dr. Craig Butz, Principal of Pepin Academies in Tampa; Leon Kung, Board Chair of School of Arts and Sciences in Tallahassee; and Ms. Jane Watt, Board Chair of Marco Island Academy.

We were pleased to have so many FCPCS members invited to speak on this topic, since it is of great concern to us all and is listed as Priority 1 in FCPCS’s 2017 Legislative Platform.

All of the charter school representatives (there were five on the panel) indicated that charter schools need a consistent source of capital funding and that charter schools must receive capital funding that is comparable to what traditional school districts receive. All of the presenters gave the Subcommittee members real-world examples of the huge disparity between the amount of capital funding received by their sponsor school districts and what they receive.

Once again, with the testimony of Dr. Butz, Mr. Kung and Ms. Watt before this prestigious Senate subcommittee, the awareness of these key lawmakers of the needs of Florida’s charter schools was greatly expanded and enhanced.

About the Florida Consortium of Public Charter Schools

The Florida Consortium of Public Charter Schools (FCPCS) is the leading charter school membership association in the state, with a membership of nearly 75 percent of all operating charter schools. Since its inception in 1999, FCPCS has been dedicated to creating a national model of high quality, accredited public charter schools that are student-centered and performance-driven. FCPCS provides a wide array of technical support, mentoring, training, networking, and purchasing services to its membership, as well as serving as an advocate for all Florida public charter schools.

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